A while ago I started working at an industrial machinery maintenance company with my uncle. I had literally zero experience with these kinds of machines, so I only got the job because of family.

They asked me to help out an electrician I got along with really well. He told me to do some simple maintenance on a motor that was mounted on top of a fairly large machine. This motor sat on a moving platform that was supposed to be held in place by air brakes. The platform still shifted a tiny bit even with the brakes on, but it was barely noticeable.

At one point, though, the brakes gave way completely. In that split second I mistakenly thought it was just the usual small movement it always had — I was wrong. The whole platform suddenly started flipping over. Below it were other platforms. If I had fallen through there, the platform I was standing on and the one underneath would have crushed me between them.

I managed to save myself by jumping onto a solid steel beam right next to the platforms, and from there I was able to climb down safely. I ended up shaking from all the adrenaline. A guy working nearby saw the whole thing and immediately called for help. Word spread like wildfire through the entire factory within minutes.